1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a yield monitor, and more particularly to a yield monitor for use with forage processing machinery.
2. Description of the Background Art
Modern farming has continued to evolve and change as farmers strive to increase efficiency of farming methods and to operate in a way that maximizes yields while conserving soil and minimizing use of pesticides, fertilizers, etc. One area of great interest is precision farming, where instead of treating a field as one uniform unit of land, a farmer maps, analyzes, fertilizes, harvests, and otherwise treats small sections of a field. Using precision farming techniques, a farmer can more precisely control the application of fertilizers, pesticides, etc., and can more precisely monitor resulting yields. This allows field treatment on more of an as-needed basis and makes better use of resources.
In order to do this, a farmer needs to be able to measure and record yield levels at different spots in the field as the crop is being harvested or otherwise processed. This data may be used to generate a yield map showing yield levels for each region of a field.
In the prior art, precision farming for grain production has included devices such as yield monitors. Typically, yield monitors are included on a combine or other grain harvester and can gather yield data as the grain is harvested. For example, in a wheat combine, the grain is weighed or otherwise quantified as it is harvested (i.e., weighed in the harvesting machine). As previously discussed, this presents advantages to the farmer in being able to know how each small region of the field is producing. Problem regions can be targeted, insect infestations can be outlined, different soil types can be identified and plotted, diseases can be identified, fertilizer quantities can be adjusted, etc.
Typically, when storing yield data to a yield map, multiple measurements may be taken and averaged for each cell (a field may be divided up into cells, with a cell being the smallest unit measured or displayed). Typically, a cell is equal in width to a harvester or processing machinery operating width, such as, for example, a cut width or pickup width. By measuring an instantaneous yield amount, a machine can measure and record a yield amount for each cell of a field. The data may be manipulated or transmitted to other computers for analysis and storage.
One area that has not seen wide application of precision farming methods and machinery is in the area of forage. Forage is defined as cultivated non-grain plants or plant parts, other than separated grain, grown for grazing or for harvest as animal feed. The term forage generally refers to more-digestible material (e.g., what is called pasturage, hay, silage, dehydrated, green chop) in contrast to less-digestible plant material, known as roughage. Examples of forage crops are grasses, hay, alfalfa, corn silage, etc. Forage is widely used for animal feed especially, for example, during winter time when pasture grasses are generally not available. In addition, forage can be harvested and stored during abundant times as a hedge against leaner times.
Forage processing machinery encompasses many different types of machinery used for different purposes. Examples of forage processing machinery are mowers, windrowers, mower conditioners, balers, etc. A mower includes a cutter bar and cuts the forage, with the forage lying where it falls. A windrower is essentially a mower that gathers the cut forage into a windrow. The forage harvester 110 is a machine that cuts or picks up forage, chops it into small pieces, and deposits the chopped forage (sometimes referred to as silage) into a trailing wagon. The chopped forage is generally fed into a blower that blows the chopped forage up a spout and into the wagon. A baler picks up cut forage and compresses it into a rectangular or round bale that is bound up with wire, twine, or a net wrap.
The availability of grain yield monitors, as opposed to yield monitors for forage crops, is due to the fact that the harvesting of grain is quite different from the harvesting of forage. For example, grain is typically small, fairly uniform in terms of size, density, moisture content, etc., where forage may include a wide variety of plant sizes, plant moisture content, leaf types, stem lengths, toughness, etc. Therefore, although much progress has been made in yield monitored devices for grain harvesting, forage harvesting has not seen such improvements. Based upon current techniques, the farmer can obtain yield values only on a per field basis.
What is needed, therefore, are yield monitors for forage processing machinery.